CCH Tax and Accounting Offers Unique Access to Ernst & Young Online Tax Advisor

(RIVERWOODS, ILL., October 12, 2004) – Subscribers to the CCH^® Tax Research NetWork™ from CCH Tax and Accounting (CCH) now have access to another unique resource providing an efficient and cost-effective way to handle in-depth tax questions. CCH and Ernst & Young LLP have formed an exclusive alliance to bring CCH Tax Research NetWork subscribers The Online Tax Advisor, an electronically connected network of more than 300 experienced Ernst & Young tax professionals who provide written tax advice on a wide range of issues.

"This is an invaluable resource for professionals who are on tight deadlines, firms that need insight into a specialized area or anyone who desires a second opinion," said Mike Sabbatis, Vice President of Sales and Marketing for CCH.

Easy Access

To access The Online Tax Advisor, users simply click on the Ernst & Young Tax Advisor link from CCH Tax Research NetWork. This takes them to a secure site where they fill out an online submission form to provide relevant facts, questions and the jurisdictions they want the response to cover.

Once the inquiry is received by an Online Tax Advisor professional, users get a prompt reply by either phone or via e-mail to clarify any details in their questions and to provide a fee quote.

Questions are routed to appropriate tax professionals, who research the issues and prepare written responses. Each response is reviewed by a second subject matter professional before it is returned.

Wide Range of Coverage

The Online Tax Advisor covers a wide range of federal, state and local tax issues and those of 30 non-U.S. jurisdictions as well. Domestic subject areas include:

Accounting Methods and Inventory
Compensation and Benefits
Consolidated Returns
Corporate Tax
Employment Tax and Information Reporting
Estate and Gift Tax receipts tax
Expatriate Tax
Financial Services
Health Care
Individual Tax
Insurance
International Tax
IRS Practice and Procedure
Limited Liability Companies
Mergers and Acquisitions
Partnership Tax
Real Estate
S Corporations
State and local taxes

Income/franchise tax
Premium and retaliatory tax
Property tax
Sales, use, and gross receipts tax

Statistics and sampling
Tax compliance
Tax-exempt organizations
Transfer pricing
Trusts

Fast Delivery, Toll-Free Assistance

Generally, single jurisdiction questions are completed and returned within three business days following submission (one additional day is added for multi-jurisdiction submissions). Expedited delivery is available for an additional fee for either one or two-business day delivery (included in the fee quote). Larger projects may require a turnaround beyond the usual three days. Non-U.S. jurisdiction questions are generally processed within four business days. (Non-U.S. jurisdiction questions generally are not fee quoted at this time.)

Users may speak with an Online Tax Advisor professional by calling a toll-free number at any point in the process, to help formulate their facts and questions, define the scope or discuss pricing. They may also call an Online Tax Advisor tax professional to discuss the written research response to their questions and, if necessary, to clarify any details.

Commonly Asked Questions

Users of the CCH Tax Research NetWork also have complimentary access to Ernst & Young's Commonly Asked Questions, a collection of answers to common state questions posed to the professionals at Ernst & Young.

With this archive of analysis, users can gain practical insights from reviewing summaries of actual responses by Ernst & Young to real issues and develop a better understanding of their own tax questions.

Ernst & Young's Commonly Asked Questions includes more than 700 memorandums treating State Income and Franchise Taxes, and more than 800 memorandums covering Sales, Use and Gross Receipts Taxes.

"Users have the full functionality of CCH Tax Research NetWork to search these documents," Sabbatis said. "This allows them to discover fruitful lines for further research, or refine their issues for submission to the Online Tax Advisor."

Pricing

The Online Tax Advisor will provide a fee quote and completion timetable upon submission of a question. Work will not begin on the question until the user has accepted the fee quote arrangement. The average fee for U.S. jurisdiction questions, based on 36,000 questions answered to date, is approximately $1,600. The Online Tax Advisor can also accept, with upfront discussion, larger questions, such as multi-state studies. CCH Tax Research NetWork users have access to Ernst & Young's Commonly Asked Questions at no additional charge. For more information, call 800-449-8114.

About Ernst & Young

Ernst & Young, a global leader in professional services, is committed to restoring the public's trust in professional services firms and in the quality of financial reporting. Its 103,000 people in more than 140 countries around the globe pursue the highest levels of integrity, quality, and professionalism to provide clients with solutions based on financial, transactional, and risk-management knowledge in Ernst & Young's core services of audit, tax, and corporate finance. Further information about Ernst & Young and its approach to a variety of business issues can be found at www.ey.com/perspectives. Ernst & Young refers to all the members of the global Ernst & Young organization.

About CCH Tax and Accounting

CCH Tax and Accounting (www.tax.cchgroup.com), based in Riverwoods, Ill., is a leading provider of tax, audit, and accounting information, software and services. It has served tax, accounting and business professionals and their clients since 1913.

Among its market leading products are The ProSystem fx® Office, CCH® Tax Research NetWork™, Accounting Research Manager™ and the U.S. Master Tax Guide®. CCH Tax and Accounting is a Wolters Kluwer company (www.wolterskluwer.com). Wolters Kluwer is a leading multinational publisher and information services company. Wolters Kluwer has annual revenues (2003) of €3.4 billion, employs approximately 18,750 people worldwide and maintains operations across Europe, North America and Asia Pacific. Wolters Kluwer is headquartered in Amsterdam, the Netherlands. Its depositary receipts of shares are quoted on the Euronext Amsterdam (WKL) and are included in the AEX and Euronext 100 indices.

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